A party that failed to comply with a prior court order was found to be in civil contempt and given five days to come into compliance before a $1,000 daily fine begins to accrue. The moving party is entitled to ...

Tagged with: Judge T.S. Ellis III Sanctions U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A hearing officer’s conclusion that the Loudoun County School Board provided a 9-year-old student with a free appropriate public education, or FAPE, required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA, was not erroneous. Background Plaintiffs Kewin and Elizabeth ...

Tagged with: Administrative Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 preempts a suit contesting a multimillion-dollar withdrawal liability owed to the trade association that offers the pension plan because the claims challenge the plan’s terms as violative of ERISA. The plaintiffs could ...

Tagged with: Judge T.S. Ellis III Labor U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where there was no evidence that any of the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s alleged conduct was based on an employee’s race or age, the agency  prevailed on the hostile work environment claim. Where the employee was not satisfying ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Although a former Army employee did not administratively exhaust her constructive discharge claim and the Army prevailed on claims for discrimination and disparate treatment based on gender, disability bias and failure to accommodate, a jury will decide if the Army ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

The architecture of the defendant’s loan servicer website meant the plaintiff agreed to arbitration through a “clickwrap” agreement, even though he denied reading or reviewing it. Moreover, the loan servicer could rely upon a promissory note that incorporated the agreement, ...

Tagged with: Arbitration Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where an employee’s complaint did not allege facts showing her race or gender were reasons for her employer’s actions, that she experienced a hostile work environment or suffered an adverse employment action, her claims were dismissed, albeit with leave to ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Although the court is authorized to award restitution to the victim of child pornography, which includes trauma or losses that may have resulted from the documentation of the sex act as well as the act itself, the government failed to ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

In an issue of first impression, a court in the Fourth Circuit held defendants can be required to disclose their intent to rely on an advice-of-counsel defense and that the assertion of that defense waives the attorney-client privilege to a ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where the defendant was convicted of mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy, and the jury held that fraud proceeds from the sale of real properties in Fairfax and Bethany Beach were traceable to two of the counts on which the ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District